Dunstan: One Man Will Change the Fate of England

The year is 937. England is a nation divided, ruled by minor kings and Viking lords. Each vies for land and power. The Wessex king Æthelstan, grandson of Alfred the Great, is readying himself to throw a spear into the north. Behind him stands Dunstan, the man who will control the destiny of the next seven kings of England and the fate of an entire nation. Welcome to the original game for the English throne.

Ross Poldark: Poldark, Book 1

Tired from a grim war in America, Ross Poldark returns to his land and his family. But the joyful homecoming he has anticipated turns sour, for his father is dead, his estate is derelict, and the girl he loves is engaged to his cousin. But his sympathy for the destitute miners and farmers of the district leads him to rescue a half-starved urchin girl from a fairground brawl and take her home - an act which alters the whole course of his life....

Mansfield Park

At the tender age of 10, Fanny Price is 'adopted' by her rich relations and is removed from the poverty of her home in Portsmouth to the opulence of Mansfield Park. The transplantation is not a happy one. Dependent, helpless, neglected and forgotten, Fanny struggles to come to terms with her new life until, tested almost to the limits of endurance, she assumes her righful role...

The Shadow Queen

From the Sunday Times best-selling author of The Queen's Choice. A tale of treachery, power-hungry families and legal subterfuges. Woven through it is a remarkable story of a beautiful girl, desirable as a bride, growing to be a woman of foresight and power. A story of love and loyalty and of the cost of personal ambition. The story of the woman who would ultimately wield power as the King Mother to 10-year-old King Richard II.

Owen: Tudor Trilogy, Book 1

England, 1422: Owen Tudor, a Welsh servant, waits in Windsor Castle to meet his new mistress, the beautiful and lonely Queen Catherine of Valois, widow of the warrior king, Henry V. Her infant son is crowned king of England and France, and while the country simmers on the brink of civil war, Owen becomes her protector. They fall in love, risking Owen's life and Queen Catherine's reputation, but how do they found the dynasty that changes British history - the Tudors?

The Plantagenet Prelude

When William X dies, the duchy of Aquitaine is left to his 15-year-old daughter, Eleanor. But such a position for an unmarried woman puts the whole kingdom at risk. So on his deathbed William made a will that would ensure his daughter’s protection: he promised her hand in marriage to the future King of France. Eleanor grows into a romantic and beautiful queen, but she has inherited the will of a king, determined to rule Aquitaine using her husband’s power as King of France. Her

Virgin Widow

'I was a penniless, landless petitioner, my Neville blood a curse, my future dependent on the charity of those who despised me....' Anne Neville is the heiress and daughter of the greatest powerbroker in the land, Warwick the Kingmaker. Trapped in a deadly tangle of political intrigue, she is a pawn in an uncertain game, used by the houses of Neville, York and Lancaster alike. In England's glittering, treacherous court, not all wish to see the Nevilles raised high.

The Scandalous Duchess

If you will be a great man's mistress, you must pay the price.... The Savoy, 1372. Widow Lady Katherine Swynford presents herself for a role in the household of merciless royal prince John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, hoping to end her destitution. But the Duke's scandalous proposition leaves her life of pious integrity reeling.... Seduced by the glare of royal adoration, Katherine becomes John's mistress. She will leave behind everything she has stood for to play second fiddle to his young wife and ruthless ambition.

The King's Sister

One betrayal is all it takes to change history. It's 1382. Daughter of John of Gaunt, sister to the future King Henry IV, Elizabeth of Lancaster has learned the shrewd tricks of the court from England's most powerful men. In a time of political turmoil, allegiance to family is everything. A Plantagenet princess should never defy her father's wishes. Yet headstrong Elizabeth refuses to bow to the fate of a strategic marriage.

First of the Tudors

Jasper Tudor, son of Queen Catherine and her second husband, Owen Tudor, has grown up far from the intrigue of the royal court. But after he and his brother Edmund are summoned to London, their half brother, King Henry VI, takes a keen interest in their future. Bestowing earldoms on them both, Henry also gives them the wardship of the young heiress Margaret Beaufort. Although she is still a child, Jasper becomes devoted to her and is devastated when Henry arranges her betrothal to Edmund.

The Secret Diary of Eleanor Cobham

England, 1441: Lady Eleanor Cobham, Duchess of Gloucester, hopes to become Queen of England before her interest in astrology and her husband's ambition leads their enemies to accuse her of a plot against the king. Eleanor is found guilty of sorcery and witchcraft. Rather than have her executed, King Henry VI orders Eleanor to be imprisoned for life.

The Forbidden Queen

An innocent pawn. A kingdom without a King. A new dynasty will reign.... It's 1415. The jewel in the French crown, Katherine de Valois, is waiting under lock and key for King Henry V. While he's been slaughtering her kinsmen in Agincourt, Katherine has been praying for marriage to save her from her misery. But the brutal King wants her crown, not her innocent love. For Katherine, England is a lion's den of greed, avarice and mistrust. And when Katherine is widowed at 21, she is a prize ripe for the taking.

Shadows and Strongholds

An awkward misfit loathed by his autocratic grandmother, nine-year-old Fulke FitzWarin leaves his family to be fostered in the household of Jocelin de Dinan, lord of Ludlow. Fulke is to train in knightly arts but to succeed he must overcome the deep-seated doubts holding him back. Hawise, Jocelin's youngest daughter, befriends the young Fulke.

The Templar Prophecy: John Hart, Book 1

June 1190. A Knight Templar, Johannes von Hartelius, rescues the Holy Lance from his drowning King during the Third Crusade. April 1945. A courier arrives at the Hitler bunker with a parcel. The Führer calls for a vacuum canister to be brought, seals the documents he has received inside it, attaches the canister to a leather case containing the Holy Lance, and sends it away, guarded by a descendant of Johannes von Hartelius.

Goodbye Piccadilly: War at Home, 1914

In 1914, Britain faces a new kind of war. For Edward and Beatrice Hunter, their children, servants and neighbours, life will never be the same again. For David, the eldest, war means a chance to do something noble; but enlisting will break his mother's heart. His sister Diana, nineteen and beautiful, longs for marriage. She has her heart set on Charles Wroughton, son of Earl Wroughton, but Charles will never be allowed to marry a banker's daughter.

Shadow on the Crown: The Emma of Normandy, Book 1

Set in England when Vikings are on the brink of invasion, this is an epic tale of seduction, war, and unrequited love from an outstanding new voice in historical fiction. In 1002 AD Emma, a young Norman girl, must take her place as bride to England's King Æthelred, a ruler who is looking for nothing more than a political pawn to protect his shores and bear his next child.

The Queen's Choice

France, 1399: the Duke of Brittany is dead, and his widow, Joanna of Navarre, has inherited control of their land - a testament to her intellect, integrity and political prowess. Then comes an unprecedented proposal from Henry IV, King of England. The price of becoming his Queen? Abandoning her homeland, leaving her children and sacrificing her independence. Henry's hold on the crown is unsteady, and war is brewing.

Easterleigh Hall

A compelling new series set in County Durham just before the First World War. Perfect for fans of Longbourn and Downton Abbey. When Evie Forbes starts as an assistant cook at Easterleigh Hall, she goes against her family's wishes. For ruthless Lord Brampton also owns the mine where Evie's father and brothers work, and there is animosity between the two families. But Evie is determined to better herself. And her training at the hall offers her a way out of a life below stairs.

Publisher's Summary

1630: after long years of peace the reign of Charles I brings brutal civil war to England. The clash between King and Parliament is echoed at Morland Place when Richard brings home a Puritan bride while his brother, Kit, joins Prince Rupert and the Royalist cavalry, leaving their father Edmund desperately trying to steer a middle course between the fighting factions. As the war grinds on, bitterness and disillusion replace the early fervour, and the schisms between husband and wife, father and son, grow deeper.

Edmund struggles grimly through it all in an attempt to keep the Morland fortune intact, but he is thwarted by the estrangement between his sons and then alienated from his beloved wife, Mary.

This is perhaps the best of the four Morland Dynasty novels I have read. It is set during the Civil War in England, beginning in 1630 and closing with the execution of Charles I in 1649. The history unfolds through the lives of various members of the Morland family who find themselves divided by their loyalties and forced along different paths, often at odds with those they love most. The fictional characters here are, on the whole, more engaging than in the previous novels, and through their stories, I began to have a far better understanding of what had transpired during these years.

To be sure, I had been taught about the Civil War in England, and of course I knew that Charles I had been beheaded by his political enemies. But in spite of this, I did not understand much about it, especially the causes of the war and reasons for such bitterness and extreme action. Viewing the history through the eyes of “real” people made it concrete and far more tragic than it had ever appeared during a high school/college lecture or in the pages of any history book I had read.

This book was worthwhile and I certainly will continue my journey through British history with the Morlands. There are at least 35 books in this series, so it will be a long journey for sure. If the accuracy of the history and the quality of the narrative continue, I most likely will as well.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Tlclovesme

Massachusetts

28/08/12

Overall

Performance

Story

"Terrible Narration!"

What disappointed you about Dynasty 4: The Oak Apple?

The narrator for this book is simply awful. His voice is cloying and over-dramatic. So much so, that I had to turn it off after thirty minutes. I can't bear to listen to a narrator who sounds like he's telling a pirate adventure story to a seven year old. It's annoying and exasperating.

What could Cynthia Harrod-Eagles have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Unless the choice of narrator was hers, I'm not sure. I don't k ow how the story is, as I couldn't get through more than a half an hour of it.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

See above. Cloying, breathy, over-dramatic. I was totally distracted by this and wasn't able to follow the story line. I kept thinking (hoping) it would change, but I couldn't bear to listen any longer. A good narrator makes you forget that you're listening to a story at all. A good narrator lets your minds eye take over and the story unfold naturally. A good narrator should never be the main character, but should slip into the background. Terry Wale seems to read the story as if HE is the primary character, and it's HIS voice you bought the book for. Over-acted and in the way.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Dynasty 4: The Oak Apple?

Any scene read by Terry Wale.

Any additional comments?

I find it hard to believe that this actor was hired to read the rest of this very long series! The first three narrators were all very good - each a little different (one very different, as she was a woman) - but all were very believable. I'm so disappointed, because I was beginning to really like this series, and was excited that between the umpteen more books in it I had at least fifty or sixty more hours of listening time. I absolutely love falling into a good historical novel, and because I travel so much for work I don't have a lot of time to read. Now I feel like there's been a death in the family. Boo on you Hachette for hiring this wanker to read the entire series!

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Report Inappropriate Content

If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action.